U.P. Cares – Safety Campaign

Union Pacific
Brand Awareness, Out-of-Home Advertising, TV/Radio

The Challenge

Union Pacific Railroad is committed to public safety in the communities they serve. They wanted a public safety campaign that educated drivers and pedestrians on the importance of being aware when driving or walking near railroad tracks. The challenge was to not take the easy way out and use scare tactics, but to develop messaging that was memorable, compelling and positive in tone.

The Solution

G/L developed a multi-media campaign utilizing outdoor, transit and radio in eight markets. The media strategy was to target “hot spots” or areas where multiple incidents had occurred with vehicles/pedestrians.

Markets varied in size and demographics, and the media mix and creative was tailored to the particular type of safety incidents occurring—trespassing, grade crossing violations, etc. Messaging was done in English and Spanish.

The Result

Campaign helped Union Pacific improve public safety by reducing railroad crossing accidents 3% in 2015 to 2.28, which is the total number of Federal Railroad Administration reportable grade crossing accidents per million train miles. This demonstrates ongoing progress toward the company’s ultimate goal of zero incidents.